Unsigned Hype Revisited: The Notorious B.I.G. (March, 1992)

In an effort to highlight the hottest unsigned rapper in the streets in 1992, Matty C. chose to write about the Brooklyn upstart The Notorious B.I.G., who, at the time, unbeknownst to the rap world, was two years away from releasing one of the biggest, most successful, and most important debut records by any artist in any genre. In celebration of the official launching of the 2014 SOURCE360 Unsigned Hype Competition earlier today, we thought it appropriate to re-visit that fateful March, 1992 column, that has taken its rightful place among the elite pieces of hip-hop journalism.

UNSIGNED HYPE: MARCH, 1992 ISSUE #30

The Notorious B-I-G & The Hitman 50 Grand

If you’re an aspiring rapper and you know you have the flavor and potential to make dope records, you don’t need to go into the studio and spend crazy cash to make a fly demo. You don’t even need a 4-track; just two turntables and a microphone, press record on the tape deck and you’re good to go.

B-I-G is living proof of this fact. His DJ, Hitman 50 Grand, threw a couple classic breaks and instrumentals and let B-I-G do what he had to do: he ripped shit. Straight outta Brooklyn, New York, the heavy-set brother B-I-G has mad skills. His rhymes are fatter then he is.

All four of his jams were basically a freestyle exhibition. Obviously, to come out as an MC takes a lot more than hype rhymes, but rhyme skills are the main ingredient to true success in hip-hop, and when it comes to those, B-I-G’s got plenty.